The World's Most Beautiful Bride
by HecateA
Summary: Effie loves the big white weddings and her favourite part is the bride looking gorgeous, and so damn it, Katniss will smile. Oneshot. Mockingjay spoilers?


**I haven't written a Hunger Games story in a while, but this came to me and I thought I'd share. The whole marriage plot in Catching Fire just mesmerises me every time I reread it for some reason. Anyways, enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters portrayed below.**

**Dedication: To my awesome and talented and gorgeous amiga for her Sweet Sixteen (best. party. ever.). She likes it sappy and cheesy, and so sappy and cheesy she will get.**

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**The World's Most Beautiful Bride**

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_You would have been the world's most beautiful bride._

_-Effie Trinket to Katniss Everdeen, somewhere between the engagement and the 75__th__ Hunger Games_

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_Back home everything is so much simpler. A woman usually rents a white dress that's been worn hundreds of times. The man wears something clean that's not mining clothes. They fill out some forms at the Justice Building and are assigned a house. Family and friends father for a meal or bit of cake, if it can be afforded. Even if it can't, there's always a traditional song we sing as the new couple crosses the threshold of their home. And we have our own little ceremony, where they make their first fire, toast a bit of bread, and share it. Maybe it's old-fashioned, but no one really feels married in District 12 until after the toasting._

_-Peeta, Catching Fire_

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"Haymitch Abernathy, the presence of booze does not entitle you to any of it," Effie snapped, slapping his hand away. His next words came out as a mumble, but Effie had a decent idea of what he said.

"I promised Peeta that I'd keep you sober for the ceremony," Effie said. Just saying the word made her stomach scrunch up on itself and a faint giggle sound want to push through her lips. The ceremony.

"I thought the bride was supposed to be the excited and stressed and panicky one," Haymitch said.

"Yes, well, you know both of them the same as I do. Katniss tends to be a little more rough and insensitive whereas Peeta is simply a big-"

"I was talking about you," Haymitch cut her. Effie hoped from the most profound part of her wishful little soul that she hadn't dignified that comment with a blush. She cleared her throat.

"Yes, well, once again: you know both of them the same as I do. I think they deserve a nice wedding."

"They don't need a ceremony," Haymitch grumbled. "They need a toasting and it's done. And above all, _I _don't need a suit."

"You look half decent in your suit," Effie said, waving her hand at him. "Now stop loitering around the wine and go check on Peeta."

"What for?" Haymitch asked.

"To see if he _needs anything _for God's sake, the poor boy is about to get married!"

"Poor boy indeed," Haymitch said wandering off. He had feathers in his hair from feeding his geese that morning, but at least the stench of alcohol wasn't on his breath.

Effie spun away and strolled through what had once been the storage warehouse for the mines, but was now a wide pavilion used for both remembrance of the men who had died in accidents in the labyrinthine tunnels under their feet, and for big events. It was decorated with lanterns today- all kind of them, donated from just about everyone left in District 12. Lanterns made out of old jars, folded and cut up paper, carved out squashes, ornate metallurgic achievements… It had a certain charm, she supposed. The presence of so much fire was certainly appropriate. The tables were bare except for candle stubs and wildflowers picked by a few schoolchildren that morning. What had chocked Effie the most when she'd started to settle in District 12 was how close they all were. How they welcomed each other into their homes, shared what precious few things and resources they had, knew their neighbours, made much out of little, all knew the same songs … It had confused her at first, but slowly she'd grown to understand how things worked, and see a certain charm to that too.

She had had her hand to play in this wedding as well. When Haymitch had mentioned that Peeta had popped the question, Effie had rushed over. She understood that she, as a part of the Hunger Games, was wrapped in a web of bad memories and bitterness, and that Peeta and Katniss may want to be cut off from her after Coin took the leadership of Panem. She'd kept an eye on her little ducklings long-distance this time, through Haymitch's letters that smelled of cigars and dirt and stale food. But for the wedding she'd just _had_ to rush back and make sure it was perfect. She just did. She couldn't bear the thought of Katniss getting married in one of those awful white rental dresses or –God forbid- pants. And there had to be cake for supper and dancing and music (which nearly came without saying for the people of District 12) and decorations and it had to be a _nice _wedding. Her will to stay away had broken like a dam when Haymitch had said 'are getting married'. And so far, she didn't seem to hurt anyone. Most people looked at her bitterly since a tiny bit of her old Capitol accent still littered her voice, but Peeta and Katniss had welcomed her with open arms. Or at least Peeta had. Katniss had nodded and offered her an awkward hug, which was about as warm as she could get as far as Effie knew.

At any rate, here she was making the day perfect.

Next on her mental to-do list was to go check on the bride herself. Most of District 12 now lived in the old Victor's Village, which had been redesigned to transform the old houses into an apartment-style building. The population was relatively small and young- so this system worked. Peeta and Katniss, however, had stayed in Peeta's old house –where Katniss could run from the ghosts in hers and Peeta could stay in the comfort of his memories- and nobody had been assigned to those quarters.

She was directed upstairs by Annie Odair, who was spoon-feeding Reef one last time before handing him over to Greasy Sae for the night, while she would be busy being a bridesmaid and following Katniss' strict instructions to _have a good time. _

"Is she ready?" Effie asked. Annie nodded, crouched in front of the baby. She was wearing a short dress in an orange tint that was both bright and soft that looked startling and unnatural on such a quiet person. Actually, Annie wasn't quiet- she was just about silent. Effie knew that that was as close to talking as she'd get out of Annie, since she was nor Peeta, Katniss, Reef or another surviving Tribute.

She climbed the staircase and navigated the hallways that she knew well. She knocked on the proper door three times curtly and opened the door. She was stunned by what she saw.

Katniss' dress was a miracle all in itself. The fact that Katniss was in one post-games and post-shows, for starters, impressed Effie- though she supposed that she had worked on it hard. The dress was made out of what used to be a white cloth in which the mine's coal had been wrapped before shipping to the Capitol. It pinched and flowed at the exact right places, and natural stones and crystals lined the bust. It had once been long and the skirt had been gauzy and light thanks to an extra layer of cheese cloth (it hadn't taken long for Effie to realise that these District 12 women were quite the scavengers and scrappers), but Katniss had taken a knife to it, declaring that the dress was cumbersome.

"Katniss?" Effie asked. She turned towards the door and Effie was stunned again. Katniss' hair had been put up in a complexly styled and pinned braid with tiny white flowers- one that Effie had never seen her wear before. It made her look both sophisticated and young, soft and serious. Or at least it would if Katniss would _smile on her wedding day. _

"Sweetheart, you've got about an hour to go," Effie said. "Isn't that exciting?"

Katniss nodded.

"Maybe you could show it," Effie suggested. Katniss nodded again, but her eyes weren't meeting Effie's. Katniss always looked people in the eyes. At first Effie had thought that it was a way to show how angry she was with the world. Now she realised that most people in District 12 had that habit- Peeta said that it was to show strength and ease within poverty.

"What's wrong?"

"I can't do it," Katniss said.

"What? Sweetheart…"

"I can't do it," Katniss repeated. "I'm going to be sick."

"You can't- wait, wait, wait, let's calm down a minute. You can't marry Peeta?" Effie asked.

Katniss nodded.

"What did he do, what happened honey?" Effie said in a flurry of panic, rushing up to Katniss who pulled back before she was even touched.

"Nothing."

"Of course he didn't do anything he'd Peeta, sweetie, so why in the world not?"

When Katniss looked up she looked like she was going to cry. An annoying habit of Effie's noticed how thankfully she wasn't wearing any eye makeup, but mostly she was focusing on trying to decipher whatever was going on in Katniss' funny little head.

"It's not fair."

"What is?" Effie asked.

"That we get to do this," Katniss said. "That we get to get married. Have a nice white wedding when Finnick was only alive for the first months of his, that some people just _died, _that other lost the loves of their lives, that now there are soul mates who will never be found, that my mother couldn't even afford cake at hers because she was disowned and my father was Seam and-"

Her voice caught at the word 'mother'.

"Is the fact that your mother not in the District maybe a small factor of stress to you?" Effie asked.

Katniss shook her head. "I knew she wouldn't."

"That doesn't necessarily make it better."

Her lip trembled. "I think that I would have wanted my mom to be there at least, if my sister couldn't."

Effie knew that she had to tread carefully. If someone was going to cry sometime today, it was going to be right here, right now.

"My sister would have loved getting married," Katniss said. "She would have loved wearing a nice dress and having her hair all done up and eating sweets and holding flowers and having a big, fancy party to celebrate love and romance… that's exactly what Prim would love. And she'd have been good in a marriage. She'd be caring and kind and good and gently and she'd be excited to have children and she'd be romantic and she wouldn't be crying on her wedding day even though everyone worked so hard to pull it together and make it big and fancy, like a little brat and..."

Effie cut her off right there. "Sweetie, this wedding wasn't big and fancy. It's what you wanted. Because it's your day. I just made it happen, and you know why. Don't you Katniss?"

The blank look was an answer enough.

"You do. Before the 74th… games…"

There was some debate over the political correctness of the term 'games' now.

"… I saw you in that pearl dress. Remember that awful one that you didn't like at all? Cinna complained the entire time that he had to make it you know… but we both agreed that you looked beautiful in it and I told you that I thought that you'd make a beautiful bride if you would ever have the chance to get married." Her hands wrapped around Katniss'. She wasn't even surprised by the callousness and the blisters and the rough patches on them like she usually was. Telling this story made her remember how long and hard the young girl's life had been. "And I was so very scared of never seeing you marry the boy in the room next door- or any other boy as a matter of fact. I was so scared of losing you, because I could have so, so many times. But I didn't and now you're here and I swore to myself that you would be a beautiful bride, Katniss Everdeen. A beautiful bride… And you are."

She squeezed Katniss' hands.

"In a perfect world nobody would have died but in this imperfect one you fought tooth and nail to get here and have a chance to make the rest of your life perfect. Don't feel bad about tying the knot, sweetie."

"And Prim would have said the same thing," Katniss said.

"And Prim would have said the same thing," Effie agreed.

After a while Katniss looked up.

"Will you give me away, Effie?"

Effie frowned.

"It's supposed to be an honour in this weird ceremony you have us doing, right?" Katniss checked.

"Yes- why- why, yes," Effie stumbled. "But I thought that Haymitch was doing that…"

"I don't want him going crooked on the big day," Katniss said.

Effie smiled. "I kept him sober for you."

"You really are a planner," Katniss smiled faintly.

Effie reached out and whipped her eyes with a scarf. It didn't matter that her smile was faint, it'd be radiant later. Radiant and beautiful.


End file.
